Backfield in Motion

WATCH THIS

2007-01-24T18:05:00.000-08:00

Danielson: A Family Movie (or, Make a Joyful Noise HERE)
@ Red Vic Movie House
1727 Haight Street San Francisco, CA 94117
1/25-27 (thurs-sat)

It should be weird times at the movie house.

http://www.danielsonmovie.com/
http://www.redvicmoviehouse.com/

The Blanton 55: 50-41

2007-01-10T18:04:00.000-08:00

Wow. What great luck! Once I decide to honor the beast of a man known as Joe Blanton, his name comes up in a very serious rumor that has him packing his bags for New York (for the ridiculously radically-named Lastings Milledge aka "Da Edge"... yes, if the deal goes down, next year's year end list will carry that moniker in some way).

In any case, let's move ahead with the Blant list, after the jump of course.

50. The Knife - Silent Shout (Mute)
While it is true that I hold a little less interest in the electro-trance set, these P-fork darlings (ahem, IDOLS?) are really from another world. Retaining only an essence of their past poppier creations, the bro-sis duo embarked on a crusade of very dark proportions, leaning heavily on unique rhythms and minor-key melodies. Silent Shout is an achievement undoubtedly, but like many pop-rock enthusiasts like me, I don't like being grinded on.

49. Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere (Downtown)
Sometimes an idea is all you need. In the case of Gnarls Barkley, a fantastic, quirkily magical melding of larger-than-life soulman Cee-Lo Green and biggest-beat producer Brian "Danger Mouse" Burton, one idea stretches itself a tad thin, leading to an inconsistent record. But it's flashes of brilliance (and one huge blast called "Crazy") that keeps St. Elsewhere's discombobulated head afloat.

48. Man Man - Six Demon Bag (Ace Fu)
Reference Big Trouble in Little China an you shall be granted a spot on the list. Not to mention, these insane gentlemen are one of the top live acts on the circuit today. The album? It's alright.

47. Charlotte Gainsbourg - 5:55 (WEA International)
Daughter of Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin, star of the my fave film of '06, collaborator of Air, Jarvis Cocker, Neil Hannon and Nigel Godrich (who lent his production hand to 5:55), and a platinum selling artist in France, Charlotte Gainsbourg, plainly put, is IT. With her breathy vocal, spiced with an accent half British and half French, she just might be the most charming lady in the whole world.

46. Liars - Drum's Not Dead (Mute)
Let me present an entry from David Kamp and Steven Daly's Rock Snob*s Dictionary: "Rewards repeated listens. Euphemistic phrase employed by rock critics to confer value upon a dubious musical work that, given the reputations involved, has to be better than it sounds." I'm not sure Drum's Not Dead was just beaten into me through repeated listens, or if the inventive tribal drums and drone soundscapes than scored my afternoon naps for a week (acting as catalysts for unbelieveable dreams) turned me. But dude, after writing it off following the first three listens, this blew my mind.

45. Envelopes - Demon (Brille)
In my mind, Envelopes are Sweden's B52s... but rough around the edges. Demon is crafted recklessly with really no sense of care or delicacy. Like a ball pool or a romper room, it's exhilarating, footloose and fancy free. This is pop sitting in the muck making mud pies in the rain.

44. Cat Power - The Greatest (Matador)
Jesse Steinchen once told me that the first Cat Power record you hear first is usually your favorite, that is why Moon Pix will always my favorite and You Are Free his. Now that I've established that the ironically-titled The Greatest is not my end all be all Chan Marshall record, I can sing its praises of stepping out of the box. Marshall enlisted the Memphis Blues Band (Al Green's guys) which upps the "soul"-rating by a hundred thousand and compliments her low-register vocal to almost preposterous ends (hear: "Love and Communication") . But yeah, Moon Pix is the best.

43. Malajube - Tromp L'oeil (Ninja Tune)
French Canada is a breeding ground of these art-rock outfits. Malajube plays with the fervor and frenzy of Wolf Parade and mixes in the sweeping minor chord melodies of The Arcade Fire. On top of that, their avant-pop is powered by French singing without the slightest bit of pretention, because of the unabashed exuberance and complete lack of self consciousness that surrounds it.

42. Built to Spill - You in Reverse (Warner Bros.)
You in Reverse marks a sort of clever return of the Idaho-ians (help me out here), one in which they ditch the sleek stylings of Phil Ek's production and just go for that crunchy jam. While the hooks are still there, they seem to be a little dirtier and more hapahazard, as Doug Martsch and company show that a machine with little grime and clunkiness is just a solid way to show people that the parts still work and strive on character.

41. Lupe Fiasco - Food & Liquor (Atlantic)
What can I say? Chicago has my heart. Fiasco's witty accesibility and thoughtful flow glide through decent enough beats and appearances from Jigga, Kanye and The Neptunes and never really stop soaring. The pearl of Food & Liquor lies in the coupled "Kick, Push", a hook-laden explosion of energy and the plinking pianos of the Dr. Dre-esque "Kick, Push II". Chicago, what a wonderful town.

The Blanton 55

2006-12-31T15:09:00.000-08:00

Sorry about the delay, dudes. There were some techincal difficulties that thankfully were tuned up. Now I can post this crap I wrote a week ago today! Let's make a deal... I'll keep up if you keep up. Stay tuned for 50-41 next!

Jeezer, Blanton.

It's finally that time of year. Gush time. Last year, we celebrated the best records of 2005 and honored a great baseball player and great man, Dave Parker. This year, I wanted to supersize it. Trust supersizing something the girth of Dave Parker ain't easy. At first I considered doing The Kiko Calero 50, and though that's got a great ring to it, I've never really believed you could get it a job done with just one pitch, as nasty as his slider is.

Then it hit me like a Big Mac-induced stomach ache. 55. Joe Blant is a Giant. This list is a giant. So here we begin, another gag taken a bit too far. Today we begin with 55-51, the extra baggage as we know one of the reasons we love Blanton is his "extra baggage". So sit down and in Blanton-fashion, pick up a corndog or three, while I just rare back and throw a couple grapefruits right down the middle. Whatever that means.

55. Girl Talk - Night Ripper (Illegal Art)
To cut to the chase, Night Ripper is frenetic. This coming from the biggest of Fiery Furnaces fans. Gregg Gillis' insane mixtape is not so much a joy to listen to, but more tremendous fun to pick out every single famous song you've ever heard.

54. The Walkmen - A Hundred Miles Off (Record Collection)
While this record stands as Hamilton Leithauser and company's most average and perhaps least interesting release in the band's short discography, the swagger and ultra-cool vibe coupled with Ham's Dylan-esque ramblings still makes it a great listen. It's equally good bundled up on a crisp winter walk with your noise cans strapped on or completely wasted at a house party soaked in whiskey.

53. Sparks - Hello Young Lovers (In The Red)
20 albums in and The Brothers Mael haven't even made a dent in their endless stock of weird. Songs like "Dick Around", "Metaphor", and "As I Sit Down to Play the Organ at the Notre Dame Cathedral" should make you thankful that they aren't doing collaborations with Kelly Clarkson or something. A Jane Wiedlin duet is passable though.

52. El Perro Del Mar - El Perro Del Mar (Control Group/TGC)
Spector revival... blah blah blah. El Perro Del Mar's bittersweet tunes would strive under any pop costuming. Though the Spector-style vocal harmonies, subtle horns and string arrangments garnishes the songs with a timeless sound, it really is Sarah Assbring's lip-biting coo that drives songs like "Candy" and "God Knows (You Gotta Give to Get)".

51. Tapes 'n Tapes - The Loon (XL)
While "Crazy" was cleary the this year's "Hey Ya", I'd like to deem Tapes 'n Tapes this year's Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. A P-Fork fave, indie darling, the Minnepolis quartet took the 'lil world by storm, leaving nary a wounded PBR soldier unfinished and a bespectacled girl's heart unstolen. But underneath the shiny veneer lies hook-laden rock and roll force, solid and blue collar, blazing down a road paved by greats such as The Pixies and Pavement. Worthy of the hype? Perhaps not. Worthy of a steady head nod? Undoubtedly.

Booyah Achieved.

2006-12-16T12:40:00.000-08:00

Now I can listen to Sheer Heart Attack whenever I damn well please.

I'm a 30th Century man.

Distractions

2006-11-23T19:02:00.000-08:00

The Shins: Yeah, pretty distracting.

Turkey day is here and the Top 50 is taking major shape. I've gone back to listen to some records with heightened attention to make sure I do this thing right. As my reviews have a few and far between this fall, this should be pretty fun and perhaps exciting. There were a ton of great records exposed to me in '06 and I'm ready to let loose.

There's only one thing holding me back: the new year.

2007 is creeping harder than ever on the horizon, and evidently the word of the upcoming year is "leak". My "research" has been greatly led astray by the shiny, glistening records of future year. Here's what I have to deal with (in descending order of pant-soiling excitement)

The Shins - Wincing the Night Away

Seriously, the Portland-via-Albuquerque uber-mega-stars are still the clever pop outfit you fell in love with before Zach Braff did. I mean, didn't we all have a Shins moment where it "changed your life"? No? Well, don't I feel like an asshole? Wincing the Night Away is yet another testament of James Mercer's seemingly effortless ability to combine glorious melody with his literary wit. While it's damn near impossible to best their first two efforts, the third offering is kinda like Return of the Jedi: stll awesome no matter how much you argue against it. (is this thing on? tough crowd tonight.)

of Montreal - Hissing Fauna: Are You the Destroyer?

I've recently been delving into the back catalogue of the Bee Gees thanks to the suggestion of Jesse Steinchen, and it's becoming more and more apparent that of Montreal are the Bee Gees of this decade. They've left behind the intricate pysch-pop stylings that defined them so heavily for disco duds and dance-floor shaking basslines. While admittedly this Hissing Fauna shit is really fucking good, perhaps the best concoction of their "new style" and Kevin Barnes' ingenius pop writ, can I be a broken record here for sec and say that I miss Coquelicot and the Gay Parade?

Deerhoof - Friendly Opportunity

There has never been and will never be another band like this. That's really all I need to say. That and "The Perfect Me" does for woodblock what "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" (and Will Ferrell) did for the cowbell.

Menomena - Friend and Foe

Following the exquisite instrumental Under an Hour, Portland's Menomena brings a more conventional blueprint on their Barsuk debut, if convention defined by blaring saxes, plinking pianos and their signature experimental composition. Oh yeah, there are vocals again.

See what I have to deal with?

The Shins: http://www.theshins.com/
of Montreal: http://www.ofmontreal.net/
Deerhoof: http://deerhoof.killrockstars.com/
Menomena: http://www.menomena.com/

HOLY CRAP.

2006-11-07T17:17:00.000-08:00

THIS IS AMAZING.

I ran into the big guy, Brian Brophy on the street Saturday, and I felt ashamed that I have been neglecting you so. But you know what time of year this is... LIST MAKING TIME. That's right the Dave Parker Top 39 Albums of the Year List has gained a few pounds and will now be a girthy Top 50. Stay tuned.

Oh yeah. VOTE.

p.s. I usually vote democratic but this year I voted for Arnold to put a Kindergarten Cop sequel on the fasttrack. Make it so.

Too Little Too Late

2006-10-26T16:14:00.000-07:00

I'm not one for self promotion but what the hell.

Off I Go! (again)

2006-10-13T13:24:00.000-07:00

No time for love Dr. Jones, I'm off to Seattle while my beloved Oakland Athletics slum it in the 30 degree Motown weather. Here's a little mix I made myself for the trip:

1. Department of Eagles - Balmy Night
2. Bowerbirds - The Ticonderoga
3. Paul McCartney - Dear Boy
4. The Finches - The House with Two Front Doors
5. Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra - Elusive Dreams
6. Pulp - Mis-shapes
7. Mew - Apocalypso
8. The Knife - Kino
9. of Montreal - Gronlandic Edit
10. Evangelicals - Another Day (and you're still knocked out)
11. Dr. Dog - Ain't It Strange
12. Love - The Daily Planet
13. The Curtains - Tornado Traveler's Fear
14. Menomena - Wet and Rusting
15. Emily Haines and the Soft Skeleton - Doctor Blind
16. Simon and Garfunkel - So Long, Frank Lloyd Wright
17. Grizzly Bear - On a Neck, On a Spit
18. Joanna Newsom - Monkey and Bear
19. Harry Nilsson - Save the Last Dance for Me

Excuse the typos and grammatical gaffs... I gotta catch first pitch, then get on the plane.

Your pal,
Christopher S. Wu

It's a Wonderful Restaurant!

2006-10-02T07:29:00.000-07:00

It kinda makes me wish things would go the other way and The Fiery Furnaces would cover the 5A Rent-A-Space song. Fortunately, the "POSSIBILITIES" are endless.

Science of Music

2006-08-28T20:04:00.000-07:00

Here's another break from the p-fork '06 recaps. This was sent to me by "someone" (who I don't know because they didn't sign their name) on youtube. It's pretty hilarious. This lil video combines the mystery of making music with my great love for old science movies. But seriously, who the hell sent me this?

Best Trip EVER (Pitchfork Music Festival Day 2)

2006-08-21T22:15:00.000-07:00

Saturday

I woke up groggy eyed and completely unaware of what time it was. I was actually slightly cold from the AC that I coveted the night before but knew the split second I exited the rotating doors onto Adams Street, I would cry for that sweet sweet chill like a baby for a pacifier.

We collected our wits and sunblock, scarfed down some apple pancakes and bacon omelettes, and off we were. I was quite nervous. I don't do well in big crowds and I wasn't exactly sure of the magnitude of this festival. The train platform was relatively calm when we jumped on the L; a few wiry hipster-ish kids mucked about. But two stops later, we were ass to ankles in band tees and converse.

Kinda like that beer commercial except it didn't start snowing
and the train isn't a gigantic Coors Light can.

When those train doors opened, it was like the fucking Boston Marathon, short-shorted legs and headbanded mop-tops squeezed onto a staircase, all going one way. The show had started without us. We wiggled our way into Union Park, and upon entry, let out a sigh relief. Sure, it was a million degrees, but it was a spacious area, with room to walk, run or grapevine with the weather permitting (it was not). We missed Hot Machines, featuring members of The Ponys and Miss Alex White, entirely. I had heard their 7" which promised some hot and heavy garage-rock but frankly, I wasn't blown away and the thought of something hot and heavy was as appealing as putting on a wool sweater.

There were tons of dudes.

Sarah and I wandered around the premises in search of our dudes, the bizarro Felix and Oscar, Philly and Yake (hereafter known as "the odd couple") while Chin Up Chin Up unoffensively powered through a short set on the "Connector Stage". We caught up with the terrible two-some and staked our claim on some primo digs to see Man Man perform on the "Aluminum Stage". Man Man proved to be a great kick off to the day; they skipped, juggled, wormed and trampled their way through their catalogue. Weird music coupled with onstage antics curbed the extreme heat, which at this point was quite possibly at its peak.

Man Man: Respectable young lads.

As the odd couple went off in search of beer and water, we took in some Band of Horses from a distance. The story goes: I saw Band of Horses last fall, thought they were m'eh. I got Everything All The Time and thought it to be a understatedly brilliant mix of melodic americana and jaggedy indie rock. I saw them again on the C-stage and thought they were boring again. Maybe it was the mid-tempos, maybe it was the space between us, maybe it was the fact that my jeans were clingy with sweat, but I got a kick out of "Wicked Gil" and decided to bee-line it for shade during "Funeral". Done and done.

Band of Horses: HOT.

We all congregated by the mist tent, the, might I add, highly disappointing mist tent. I mean seriously, that's like trying to put a fire out with a squirtgun. NEXT.

After taking a few free shots of Fuze (some nutrisweet-y fruit beverage of some sort) and laying in the shady grass, I went to check out the Mountain Goats. I liken seeing John Darnielle perform to going to a midnight showing of Monty Python and the Holy Grail with a large fanoy contingency. At first, hearing everyone yell out the lines as the movie is going on is endearing. It was kinda fun that everyone was singing along with Darnielle. There's a strong sense of comraderie and a general vibe of love and acceptance. Then I found it to be annoying. I didn't know all the words and I've always thought Darnielle's music to be underwhelming. So after 3 songs, I took back the shade and rested on my laurels until Dan Bejar and Destroyer began.

The Mountain Goats: Nerds like 'em.

Bejar and Co. played one of the better sets, sound-wise of the weekend. He mostly played selections off the immaculate 2006 release Destroyer's Rubies. I'm pretty sure it was just the weather, but there was a cool breeze through most of the set and the wind scored a 9.1 on the Pitchfork scale. At the same time, I wouldn't be surprised if Bejar's melodic wizardry had something to do with the breeze. But I won't go further on that subject.

Art Brut brought it hard as they usually do with their fiery and angular brand of post-punk, and singer Eddie Argos was especially in top form with his incomparable banter and lanky dancing. Philly and Sarah had never seen the quintet before. I had seen them once. Jake rounded out the group, having seen them approximately 49 times (okay maybe more like approx. 5 times?). Nonetheless, each of us were equally entertained and satisfied.

Art Brut: A regular, uneventful, lazy Saturday afternoon.

After a solid 4 hours in the park, only one thing was perfectly clear: it was hot to death. Though I had met the heat with surprising resilience, the mere sweating was taxing. Interest was beginning to wane. It's unfortunate that both Ted Leo and the Pharmacists and The Walkmen went on in the remaining hours of light. The four of us kicked around the empty beer dixie cups and reclined in the matted grass, watched Ted performed from what seemed like a mile away. The intensity just wasn't there. And while the Walkmen, benefitted from the sun setting slightly, they were hindered by probably the worst sound of the day and were missing ferocious drummer Matt Barrick (the fill-in did an admirable job). A food run for chicken strips and cheese fries trumped the last minutes of their disappointing set, my love for them still strong as ever. I blame it on the heat.

Ted Leo: Ride the snake.

The Walkmen: What's in it for me?

Philly and food: This is actually a Sunday picture.

Sunderland's finest, The Futureheads took the stage as the sun finished setting. The relief from the pounding heat was immaculate, and allowed us to enjoy the band fully. They mixed and matched songs from their self-titled debut and their newer, sleeker release News and Tributes. Having warmed up considerably to the latter, I thorough enjoyed hearing the new tracks along with the staples of a Futureheads set (a crowd-supported sing-along of the Kate Bush cover "Hounds of Love").

The Futureheads: Oh-oh-Oh. Oh-Oh-oh.

The Silver Jews headlined Saturday night and rightfully so. Having been a celebrated band with no touring credits in a long and storied career, David Berman's indie country-rock act drew flocks to catch a glimpse of an indie near-myth. I wasn't blown out of the water by their stage presence but they sounded like pros, mixing in and out their whole catalogue but mainly focusing on tracks off Tanglewood Numbers. After a handful of songs, the exhausted four of us decided on beating the rush to the trains home. We exited the grounds and found a bumrush to the train platform. Eff. We wandered the industrial streets surrounding Union Park for about 15 minutes before we flagged down a cab, in which the driver had tickets to Sunday's festivities and headed back downtown to gorge ourselves on Jewish diner food and get mentally prepared for another day in the sweltering Chicago sun.

The Silver Jews: Sometimes a pony gets dehydrated.

(If you didn't already know, I stole nearly every picture from Pitchfork's lovely recap.)

Let me interrupt the regularly scheduled program...

2006-08-11T07:32:00.000-07:00

... to show you the second cutest video ever (Architecture in Helsinki's "Do the Whirlwind" #1, duh).

Just for kicks...

Best Trip EVER (Pitchfork Music Festival Day 1)

2006-08-10T23:23:00.000-07:00

Friday

I arrived at Midway Airport Thursday night, after a frenzy of flight changes and harried airport confusion. It turns out I had booked ticket for a month earlier, and for some strange reason I had missed my flight by a MONTH. After the smoke cleared, I found my self sitting bitch between two very familiar gentlemen, Jacob "Uncle Louie" Rosenberg and Landis "Philly""Killadelphia" Knorr. I read Vice for the first time in months and dozed in and out to Grizzly Bear's Yellow House (left). Excellent nap music. I switched to the new Black Keys' album, Magic Potion, when I finally awoke and found it incredibly boring.

When we finally touched down, I was terribly excited. Jake and Philly temporarily parted ways as I hitched a ride with Sarah and Sarah's mom out to Oak Park. Staring out to the strange streets of Cicero Ave. from the comforts of Sarah's mom's Subaru Outback, all I could only think of two things. 1) I actually made it. 2) So this is where Olga Sarantos aka Granny Fiery Furnaces was talking about. You know how I do.

Thursday night was sleepytime, but Friday started off with a bang. After a trek into Wrigleyville to track down incapacitated Jake's wallet (Daddy Warbucks bought us a dinner later on as a thanks) and a swing by out hotel downtown, we took in one of the greatest sports rivalry: Cubs and Cards. While the game was decent (Cubs win! Cubs win!) and the heat was manageable due to our shady seats, I found myself guilty of a tourist crime: caring less about what I'm taking in but more of how I'm gonna get a souvenir to show I was taking it in. As soon as I decided I would get a Juan Pierre t-shirt if my original plan Nomar Garciaparra jersey was unavailable, I was able to figuratively chill out. By the way, the "The Cardinals Like To Take It In Their Pujols" T-shirt (shown below) never came into the picture. I was able to relax, sip on a cold Old Style and marvel at the history and almost human-like personality of Wrigley Field.

After the game we met back up with Philly and Jake and ventured into Free Fridays at the Art Institute of Chicago, home of such famous paintings as Georges Seurat's La Grande Jatte, Grant Wood's American Gothic and Edward Hopper's Nighthawks. We ran the hurry up offense, missed Hokusai's The Great Wave of Kanagawa (on loan?), skipped as many of Monet's Haystacks as possible and had Philly and Jake pick out their metals for their Gladiator battle in the medival weapons section. We were eager to get a quick bite and finally get the music on. Jams. I wanted to hear the jams.

Edward Hopper's Nighthawks: Pretty good.

The crew waded through the humidity of Wrigleyville, fighting through the dark mugginess and indigestion from a hurried dinner at Quizno's. My Quizno's-virginity had been taken away from me and as you can probably guess, I wasn't in love and was extremely disappointed. I wanted the Joggers to come take me away. We finally made it into The Metro and Joggers had already started. If I didn't have a whole weekend recap ahead of me, I would come right out and say it: Joggers might have been the best band I saw in Chicago. This is because Joggers might be the best band in the world. Their guitar craftsmanship blows my mind and everytime I see them, I'm in sheer amazement of their fingers. Like when Trent and Sue see Mikey do the "Twirly Whirly" stuff in Swingers, I'm just speechless. They're so money they don't even know it. Ben Whitesides looks like Harry Nilsson these days; it's a very good look. To top off a set laden with tracks off With a Cape and a Cane, the Portland boys rocked a Yes cover ("Long Distance Runaround"... go to their myspace page to listen) and the barbershop acapella stylings of old fave "Back to the Future." Doc Brown would be so proud.

Though they don't seem like it, these guys are artists.

After Eugene Mirman and Todd Barry provided entertainment better than staring at the floor waiting for the next band to start, Austin's Voxtrot took stage and proceeded to wuss the place out in a totally sissy awesome way. The pop outfit brought their Belle and Sebastian meets Moz indie rock really hard. Highlights included "Mothers Sisters Daughters and Wives", "Raised By Wolves" and "The Start of Something". They say everything is bigger in Texas... Voxtrot proved that adage correct, well almost. They played for a bit too long and their catchy pop tunes suffered from a bit too much weight. By the the end of each of their 4+ minute pop tunes, I questioned why they weren't 2 minutes. Short and snappy.

Sunset Rubdown sauntered on past midnight and let me speak for myself, I was fucking tired. At this point it was chore to even stand up and though Spencer Krug and Co. (including former Pony Up! player Camilla Wynne Ingr) held my attention through most of their set, by the end, I wanted nothing more than to go back to the hotel, sit in my underwear and bask in the glory of air conditioning. They finished a little after 1am, and completely satisfied, I tagged along with the crew across the street to the gyro shop. It was there where I was to have the biggest regret of my trip: not eating a gyro. I would spend much of the rest of the weekend seeking reasons to go back to Wrigleyville, coming up with none, and dreaming of grilled onions and tzatziki.

Sunset Rubdown: I can't decide if this picture is real.

Next: Day 2. Duh.

It's good to be home.

2006-08-05T09:26:00.000-07:00

Joe Mantagna and the band Chicago have nothing to do with my trip.

Chicago was a blast.

I'm currently working on a day by day recap of the events, complete with pictures (mostly stolen from p-fork) and a whole bunch of things you didn't even care about.

Off I Go!

2006-07-26T19:36:00.000-07:00

Yes, tomorrow I'm off to Chicago to attend the Pitchfork Music Festival. So I made a little mix for the occasion (and plane ride). Sorry I cna't post the actual mp3s yet. I tried to vary new and old shit. All in all it should be very enjoyable. Huzzah!

1. Spoon - Chicago at Night from Girls Can Tell
2. Joggers - Hot Autism from Solid Guild
3. Tapes n' Tapes - Cowbell from The Loon
4. Silver Jews - Sometimes a Pony Gets Depressed from Tanglewood Numbers
5. Yo La Tengo - Beanbag Chair from I'm Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass
6. Danielson Famile - Good News for the Pus Pickers from Fetch the Compass Kids
7. Man Man - Feathers from Six Demon Bag
8. Aesop Rock - Save Yourself from Labor Days
9. Os Mutantes - Premier Bonheur du Jour from Os Mutantes
10. Devendra Banhart - Long Haired Child from Cripple Crow
11. Sunset Rubdown - Snakes Got a Leg III from Shut Up I Am Dreaming
12. Band of Horses - Wicked Gil from Everything All the Time
13. The National - Baby, We'll Be Fine from Alligator
14. The Walkmen - That's the Punchline from Everyone I Who Pretended To Like Is Gone
15. Ted Leo and The Pharmacists - The High Party from Hearts of Oak
16. Liars - Mr. You're On Fire Mr. from They Threw Us in a Trench and Stuck a Monument on Top
17. Art Brut - My Little Brother from Bang Bang Rock & Roll
18. The Futureheads - Decent Days and Nights from The Futureheads
19. Destroyer (w/Frog Eyes) - New Ways of Living from Notorious Lighting and Other Works
20. Mountain Goats - Lion's Teeth from The Sunset Tree
21. Cage - Agent Orange from Movies for the Blind
22. CSS (Cansei de Ser Sexy) - Alcohol from Cansei de Ser Sexy
23. Voxtrot - Raised By Wolves from Raised By Wolves EP
24. Jens Lekman - A Sweet Summer's Night on Hammer Hill from You are the Light (by which I travel into this and that) EP

This is a gonna be a great trip... GO CUBS!

Yeah.

2006-07-18T22:57:00.000-07:00

So it's becoming painfully quite obvious that this song list is not gonna be finished in time for my end of the month trip to the mecca of melting hot weather and indie band bombast, The Windy City, Chicago. Yes kids, I wanted to be list-free by the time I touched down at O'Hare for the weekend of the Pitchfork Festival. And let me tell you, my "Pitchfork-does-not-tell-me-what-to-do" stance I've been trying to uphold is taking a serious hit. But seriously, there are mega bands playing in Union Park that weekend (and even the preceeding Friday night). I'll make a mix for you all with a quick rundown of each song before next Thursday when I ship out, putting the 50 songs of the first 7/12 of the year list on hold until I get back. And hopefully preceeding that post, I'll give you all a peek into the transcedent Matthew Friedberger solo albums. YES. ALBUMSSSSS. PLURAL.

I've been told to go to Weiner Circle when I'm in Chicago. And I really like this pup.

In the meantime, I've been sensually grooving (perhaps a mental image best not conjured up) to the new Ratatat record Classics. And I'll drop a yousendit on a track right here...

Ratatat - Gettysburg (yousendit link)

Pretty great song about history and beats.

POSSIBILITIES

2006-07-09T22:55:00.000-07:00

Sorry folks, still working on listening to the numerous albums I have stored up. I've decided it will be a TOP 50. But I ain't no writing robot, so I will extrapolate on only 25. So here's one more distraction to buy me some time. He's my new favorite.

Wow.

Today's Assignment...

2006-07-04T11:15:00.000-07:00

Alright Class, I have four very pertinent bands for you to consider.

The National
United States of America
Celebration
Scott Walker

What do you say? It's the 4th of July? Silly me.

I understand Scott Walker doesn't really fit in the the whole patriotic party motif but I'm really getting in to the four Scott albums and getting really weird with his new P-Fork-approved The Drift.

Dude, you're really starting to weird me out.

For more festive purposes, here is a video that should get the sunny day vibes workin' on this overcast Independence Day.

Get wasted.

Still Workin'...

2006-06-27T22:26:00.000-07:00

... I'm still balls deep in songs for the Best of the 1st Half of 2006. The hardest part of any coach are the cuts, and to avoid rattling off 50 odd tracks I'm gonna get in there. Really hard.

In the meantime, if you haven't already indulged in this, please please do.

http://www.pitchforkmedia.com/article/feature/36588/Staff_List_100_Awesome_Music_Videos

This one made me especially happy:

Hang tight.

Hot Tea...

2006-06-19T18:47:00.000-07:00

... because that's what you are, a HOT-TEA.

That is verbatim what I said when I picked up my computer from the doctor, all healthy and pretty. It is also what I aptly said when seeing this band I think you all should check out. They're a little outift from Brooklyn, you might have heard of them: THE FIERY FURNACES. Playing equal cuts from their whole catalogue (with an obvious tilt to Bitter Tea tracks), the siblings juggernauted (is that even a word?) noisely along. Among the highlights were re-arranged knock-outs like "I'm in No Mood", "Bow Wow" and a fabulous Rehearsing My Choir medley beginning with "The Garfield El" and continuing on with "A Candymaker's Knife in my Bag". Man Man opened the soiree and pretty much blew my mind. Desoto Jeremiah succinctly described it as "John McEnroe meets The Manson Family meets the Muppets". I couldn't have put it better myself or if I was wasted on $4.75 Bud Lights.

Man Man: This is pretty sedate for them.

A couple nights before, I took in a classy evening of The Walkmen. They too played a set comprised of all their albums, favoring their newest release A Hundred Miles Off. Ham Leithauser (that's what his friends/hanger-oners call him according to William H. Glover and Daniel "The Chosen" Rosen) brought it from the beginning, his blood curdling shriek illuminating opener "All Hands and The Cook". The boys carried on with hits like "Wake Up" and "The Rat" and closed the set with "Louisiana" complete with a ragtag mariachi brass section (including Seth Cohen-lookalike bass player of opener Mazarin), blaring the s out of their horns.

The Walkmen: Classy, not assy.

Two of my favorite bands and two very enjoyable shows. Huzzah. God bless the interweb (specifically YouTube):

Next: Top Songs of the first half of 2006. I'm pretty jazzed.

The Fiery Furnaces: http://www.thefieryfurnaces.com/
Man Man: http://www.wearemanman.com/
The Walkmen: http://www.marcata.net/walkmen/
Mazarin: http://www.mazarinband.com/

More Bad Luck, Shows

2006-06-06T17:46:00.000-07:00

My computer has shit the proverbial bed... after a mere 4 months of usage, albeit hardcore usage. All my "material" is on there: new albums, mixtapes, concert listings. And I feel, as Tobias would say, "like a Mary without Peter or a Paul". But we continue march on. You gotta be strong. Put your head down and power through. Sorry... I've been watching Season 1 Arrested Development again.

So as I wait for my 'pooter to get out of the computer hospital, I've done what no respectable commited partner would do with a loved one bed-ridden. I partied really hard. So hard that the participators have dubbed it "double teaming the Frisco circuit". Friday, we "double teamed the Frisco circuit".

In layman's terms, that translate to going to two shows in one night. Sure sure, SXSW is a million times more intense than that but come on, Potrero and the Loin in one night? Give us some credit. The night started at the Great American Music Hall to see twee-pop hitmakers The Boy Least Likely To. Their set was full of boisterous clapping and flamboyant hand gestures, and capped by a sub-par cover of George Michael's "Faith". But all in all, I was impressed with what a bunch of nice looking lads from England can do with very very... hmmm, how should i put it lightly... "sissy" music. No, in all seriousness, I love the album The Best Party Ever, and the band had such pizzazz, enough to fuel all the ice cream trucks in the world. On top of that, the preview of new songs were excellent.

The Boy Least Likely To: They're pretty sensitive.

The train rolled on into the Bottom of the Hill station 'round midnight two songs late into the cultish, ultra weird entity known as Danielson. Let me be the 4000th to say that Ships is one of the best releases of 2006 thus far. Clad in costume and armed with freaky ass art rock, noisy in all the right places, insanely catchy in others, Danielson danced and "totally creeped" out the crowd through the best slivers of Ships. They come off like scraps from the dumpster of a doll factory, there is some resemblance to freighteningly pristine pop, but in actuality we're looking at severed limbs and dangling eyeballs of noise. Jacob "Louise" described them as being infected by The Joker's laughing product, a gross sickening smile on a pale white face. Bottom line, Daniel Smith is talented artist, a master chemist, mixing jarring inaccesiblity with well crafted melody and song. And they're totally weird.

Bro. Danielson: I don't find this weird at all.

Dessert came in the form of Pretty Girls Make Graves Sunday night. But rather than sweet, Seattle's own's offerings were a bit tart. The inadequacies of Elan Vital really pale to the raw awesomeness of both The New Romance and Good Health. And though neither show nor new album are bad (especially the accordian led monster hit "Selling the Wind") , it just ain't the same. They should be commended for giving us their hearts and experimenting with new keyboard sounds (thanks to noob keyboardist Leona Naess), but most of me say, "let's take a step back."

Pretty Girls Make Graves: I like this picture a lot.

Well, I'll see you when I see you, dear readers. Pray for my baby to come home safe.

The Boy Least Likely To: http://www.theboyleastlikelyto.co.uk/
Danielson: http://danielson.info/
Pretty Girls Make Graves: http://www.prettygirlsmakegraves.com/

Scandanavia is the New Canada

2006-05-26T00:03:00.000-07:00

It was over a year ago when I wrote that Canada was kicking our proverbial ass in churning out hit after hit. First of all, can you believe it's been over year since I posted about Montreal's Pony Up! as my very first entry into the annals of Backfield in Motion (and now the girls have just released their debut album Make Love to the Judges with Your Eyes)? I woulda made big hub-bub over it but if you haven't noticed I've been rather MIA recently and frankly, I don't deserve the celebration.

However back to the matter at hand, as the Arcade Fires and the Wolf Parades float on to indie rock stardom, there is a region that is consistantly exporting great pop music. Yes, France. No, wait... why aren't there more French imports? They're stylish, they're with it... they must think we can only handle Phoenix. We're not ready. Perhaps. Perhaps, I am babbling. Perhaps, I've sat down to write my online music journal (for a certain someone who despises the "B" word) far too sleepy and with absolutely no purpose.

NO! Scandanavia, specifically Sweden, aren't as stingy. They are down to share. I mean ABBA, Ace of Base and The Caridgans (man, they REALLY don't quit) are models for pop perfection. They are legendary. We celebrate them by playing the one song from a popular soundtrack in every context available in every possible moment, singing them in karaoke horribly, sampling them and making our own hits and making musicals based on them. Sure, we need to give credit where credit where credit is due.

But c'mon, we live in the now. We should open the window and get a breath of fresh air. Those Swedes are fuckin' bringing it super hard right now. Dungen. Jens Lekman. The Raveonettes. Jose Gonzalez (actually to be honest, I think he's a little "m'eh"). The list goes on with bands that I'll be embarassed I forgot... except for these four albums that dropped in '06. They comprise the tape mix in my car that was practically (but not literally) jammed in there for the last couple months (only recently set free). Now let me share with you.

Side A:

Love Is All (pictured above)- Gothenburg's cutest might have created my favorite album of the year so far (ummm... Bitter Tea, anyone?). Nine Times the Same Song is a pop explosion with an uncontainable vibrance. It's rough edges and imperfections make it even more endearing. While a ballad like "Turn the Radio Off" is a perfect example of what makes the album as a whole a bit of a rollercoaster ride, its clunkiness and awkwardness harnesses a naivete and innocence like teenage love. It's might not be the right way but it feels right. Meanwhile, their fast songs bounce along recklessly, footloose and fancy free, and are undeniably some of best pop-punk songs written since... ever. I would cite examples here but I don't feel like typing out five songs titles. Okay fine: "Aging Has Never Been His Friend", "Spinnning and Scratching", "Busy Doing Nothing", "Talk Talk Talk Talk", "Used Goods"... to name a five.

Figurines - Okay, Copenhagen isn't exactly in Sweden but Figurines isn't your typical fast punk band either. Together with Love Is All, Figurines officially makes Side A of the Scandanvian Mix the "air drumming" side. Skeleton is nothing new for sure, but its impeccable songwriting, angular guitars and caffeine fueled tempos are executed with precision. Christian Hjelm does a very good Doug Martsch impression, which makes Figurines that much more interesting; would Doug Martsch write a bunch of pop-punk tunes? Who cares? Songs like "All Night" and "The Wonder" are guns ablazing, while more introspective tunes like "Silver Ponds" showcase a real knack for melody. Then there is "Other Plans" which is the perfect marriage between the rollicking guitars and nuanced melodies. I don't even want to talk about how that works. It's like coffee and cigarettes, baby.

Side B:

The Concretes - The fact that the 8-piece shedded the "Velvets meets Motown" skin on In Colour actually saddened me quite a bit. Then I realized that though songs like "Diana Ross" and "You Can't Hurry Love" were great and all, it was "Warm Night" which was my favorite song on their eponymous album. Its warm and fuzzy, "Que Sera Sera"-vibe is the main melodic theme for In Colour, and The Concretes set themselves free of any chains of old comparisons. They can be as twee as they wanna be. And if you didn't know already, I'm twee as fuck.

Audrey of Envelopes... I think. Could just be a random girl.

Envelopes - Finally, Envelopes are the most bizarre of the bunch. Demons is collection of zany, off the wall pop songs, complete with silly singing, frenetic mood swings and weird guitar parts. "My Fren" executes your standard boy/girl singing with hooks galore, while "Sister in Love" is a raucous romp. Demons isn't flawless but neither was of Montreal's Cherry Peel, and that good album spawned one our best pysch-pop phenoms today. Of course, I say that with absolutely no bias.

Alright kids, have a great holiday weekend. I'll get back atcha when I get the beach smell out my hair.

Love Is All: http://www.myspace.com/loveisall8
Figurines: http://www.figurines.dk
The Concretes: http://www.theconcretes.com/
Envelopes: http://www.envelopes.se/

Fambly Comes First (Not a Grandaddy Review)

2006-05-11T07:52:00.000-07:00

Now before you say breakfast comes before anything and that it's the most important thing, let me just tell you, it's family. Today, I head to LA for the weekend for my lil' sis' college graduation brimming with great pride and armed with mixed CDs (along with new albums by The Walkmen, Sufjan Stevens, The Futureheads, to name a few).

Since the AD picture I put up to head this entry isn't a brother/sister (can I get a Lindsay/Michael pic or what?) dealio, I will attach this one below which is (ca. 1979). I doubt I need to say who is it. Seriously folks, this might be the most adorable picture ever.

Eleanor, put your mask back on.

Huzzah! "Ingratualations" sister!

New Noise Pop

2006-05-05T15:30:00.000-07:00

As Divisadero Street becomes "New Valencia" (or "Valencia II" if you prefer), the first week of May is officially anointed "New Noise Pop". The end of April brought a couple shows leading up to this week of aural hedonism (check out my extremely streamlined design, put together by the most sought after artistic minds). Here's a quick rundown so far.

Dungen - Great. Just great. They didn't play either of my favorite songs, "Lipsill" or "Du E För Fin För Mig" but I don't mind that much. I found out Ta Det Lungt means "take it easy" and that made a lot of sense, seeing that they were pretty fucking rockin'. Whatever. That might a different Swedish point of view. Nonetheless, all I wanted to do sit back, take the button-down down a few notches, slip on my Risky Business shades and sip on a Bartles and James. Or just nap. In a total good way though.

The Go! Team - I had seen the Brighton group before and thought they were awesome. They still are. Unfotunately I fell a little out of love with Ninja, their peppy ringleader, who's grating rap was far too forefront to make it enjoyable. She's a great leader and a fantastic dancer, but the emphasis should be on the instruments... or the chirp of the sweet-voiced Japanese guitar player.

Viva Voce - To be quite honest I found myself twidling my thumbs. I was really jazzed the last time I saw the husband-wife duo but this time, despite the double necked guitar and cutesy (but understated) enthusiasm they had, I was kinda bored. Weird mood, I guess.

Mates of State - I've come to the realization that I like probably 92% of their music which is a pretty high percentage. You could say I celebrate their whole catalog and it's nice to know they do too. They covered all they could in a regular sized set, from all albums, and though I've seen them play and make puppy dog eyes at each other a handful of times now. I'd do it again. Just try me.

Celebration - Though slightly off-kilter, I completely love these guys. They have my full devotion forever and ever. Slightly dissonant and rhythmic to the max, they just had this unabashed emotion, culminated in the jarring and reckless dancing of singer Katrina Ford. Her vocals can rub people the wrong way a bit and she's a bit liberal with her use of shrieks and gutteral noises but as I've said before, love is blinding and I let it slide. Along with a sort of primitive drumming and eerily enchanting organ sounds, Celebration had my heart from the first tambourine shake.

Celebration: There was another pic with quasi-nippleage, so I chose this one.

TV on the Radio - I have to hand it to them. They know their hits. TVOTR put together a great setlist with old faves of mine like "Dreams", "The Wrong Way" and "Young Liars" while mixing in new songs from the forthcoming Return to Cookie Mountain (amazing title, I must admit) like "Dirty Whirlwind" an "Wolf Like Me". All together, this was a fantastic show

Okay - I've "seen" them (him?) twice and neither time I could tell you what the hell was going on because I was hanging out on the patio or spacing out at the weird crap they play on the TVs at Bottom of the Hill. That's about all I have on that one.

Sunset Rubdown - I took me a while to really love Shut Up I Am Dreaming (which was released this past Tuesday), so the expectations for the show were not super high. But then I remembered, it's not like I have to reacclimate myself with these songs. I already like them. So the show was excellent. Spencer Krug's weirdo warble is like a sonic panty remover for the ladies, but though seemingly simple, Krug's songwriting and arrangements are surprisingly sophisticated, complete with keyboard delicacies and non-intrusive guitar riffage. There was sweating, Danny Devito stories and Camilla of Pony Up! (which any BIM afficianado can tell you was the subject of the first post ever), throw in some PBRs and laughing with friends and you have a pretty excellent night.

Yeah, this is the one with the nippleage.

New Noise Pop '06 continues with Islands and Why? (@ Slim's) on Saturday and concludes with Destroyer on Monday (@ Cafe Du Nord).

Not Quite Dead

2006-04-25T08:11:00.000-07:00

... Yet.

Has it really been two months? Or has it been longer? Wow. Wow. I'm just checkin in, I couldn't leave you guys hanging with what ANOTHER FIERY FURNACES ALBUM OUT. And who would I extrapolate over the Scandanavian boom to, if you guys didn't lend your ears? Cutting to the chase, I need you. I'm lonesome without you. I want you in my arms, baby.

So while I muster up the courage to allow you to read my passages once again, I'll leave with a pleathora of Gnarls Barkley promo stuff (including two videos), because, if I may be so bold, "Crazy" is the best song of 2006. Or, sheesh, you already knew that... I'm not impressing anyone.

(Live on Top of the Pops)

(Official Video)